If the Petals were to Break
by Sayu-fu
Summary: Five years after Sasuke left, Sakura moves from her hometown. Two years after she isn't much less than an empty shell. Naruto suggests to reunite her with her friends. They've changed, but is it for the better? AU, Sakura centric, mild SasuSaku HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

**I dunno, I decided to write this, sorta to sidetrack me. Pairings soon to be revealed, and expect a bit of SasuSaku. Only a little though. Hinted, y'know? Sakura centric, AU, you get the picture. Oh yeah, song is Shadow of the Day by Linkin Park. I'll be making references to some of my favorite bands, so bear with me. :p **

Sakura walked into her apartment. It had been three years since she left her hometown for a new scene. The fast-paced city life seemed to be what she had wanted. She was nineteen, and she wanted to forget Sasuke. She remembered clearly the day he left, and never returned since. Being left on a cold bench isn't the best experience, and being left by your first love at thirteen isn't either.

_I close both locks below the window.  
I close both blinds and turn away.  
Sometimes solutions aren't so simple.  
Sometimes goodbye's the only way. _

It's been five years since then though, and she had said goodbye to her friends the day after Sasuke's birthday. Every year on that day, she couldn't help but cry. For her own safety, she moved. She had to say, the saddest was Lee. For the first time in years, she let him hug her. But a hug wasn't enough to convince her not to go.

_And the sun will set for you,  
and the sun will set for you.  
And the shadow of the day,  
Will embrace the world in grey,  
And the sun will set for you... _

Sakura was now terribly lonely, and it'd been two years since she left, but she didn't care. Now and then she'd go out try to drink away her bad memories. Of course, it never worked, but she always thought it was a worth a try. She never let herself go out with someone else, and never let anyone else get close to her.

Sakura got dressed in the morning. She tugged on a tight red shirt with silver sequins at the bottom and a pair of dark jeans. Work was all she could do to keep herself occupied anymore, with the occasional video game, and of course drinking. It seemed that Tsunade really had left an imprint on her. Just before she walked out the door, she tied on a pair of black converses. Maybe if she finished work early enough, she'd be able to get home early and sleep more.

_In cards and flowers on your window,  
your friends all plead for you to stay.  
Sometimes beginnings aren't so simple.  
Sometimes goodbye's the only way_.

Sakura waited at the bus stop, and constantly checked her cellphone for the time. Her phone rang. This was a bit odd, because people rarely called her anymore. She seemed to recognize the ringtone playing "Sell Out" by Reel Big Fish as Naruto. Reluctantly, she answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey Sakura-chan!"

"Hi Naruo-kun."

"Hey after work, do you wanna meet us at that new restaurant?"

"Depends. Who's 'us'?"

"Oh! Me, Hinata, Ino, Sai… And a few others…" Naruto's hyper voice crackled over her phone.

"I guess… I'll come by at six."

"Great! Oh and Sakura?"

"What? Hurry up Naruto, my bus is coming."

"Uh… Are you okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like um… How are you?" Naruto uncertainly asked.

"I'm… I'm…" Sakura had just realized that the bus was about to leave. "Oh shit. Bye Naruto, I've got to go now!" Sakura snapped her pink RZR shut, and hopped on the bus. On the other end Naruto sighed.

"Is she okay?" Hinata asked.

"I'm not sure. She hung up on me." The blond said, running his fingers through his hair. His navy haired counterpart tightly embraced him.

"I'm sure she's fine." She said into his ear.

_ And the sun will set for you,  
And the sun will set for you.  
And the shadow of the day, _

_ Will embrace the world in gray,  
And the sun will set for you.. _

Sakura boarded the bus, putting a lock of pink hair behind her ear. The rosette looked out the window, waiting to get to the hospital. She'd been flipping jobs lately, and Tsunade decided to hire her as her lobbyist. The bus wheezed to a stop, filling the air with black smog, choking passerby on the sidewalk. Sakura grabbed her purse from the seat next to her, and jogged off the bus. She walked the rest of the way to the hospital, her head down, fiddling with the latch of her purse. A few minutes later, Sakura stepped up the walkway of the medical institution. She walked through, the automatic doors opening and closing for her. Before getting to her post, she went to the changing room and opened her locker. She grasped the white button down coat and pulled her mid-length hair into a ponytail. She hurried and buttoned the jacket over her clothes. She stopped at the door and switched her shoes for a pair of lime rubber slippers. (**A/N: y'know, crocs, they were originally designed for nurses and are commonly used in hospitals.) **She hurried out and took her spot behind the lobby desk, and pulled out a magazine and started flipping pages.Minutes turned to hours of setting down the publication to instruct visitors to proper rooms, only to pick the paperback back up seconds later. Finally, the alarm on her phone rang, and she checked the time. Five 'o clock.

"Bye Shizune-senpai." She waved to the dark haired nurse down the hall as she returned to the locker room to grab her things.

"Sayonara, Sakura-san." The older woman waved. Sakura ripped off the white overcoat and stuffed it in the cubbyhole before locking it. She switched her shoes and shoved her magazine back in her purse. Her phone rang. "Welcome to the Black Parade" by MCR filled her ears as she walked out the door.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Sakura-chan?" A light voice asked.

"Hi Hinata."

"Are you still coming tonight?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Ok, I just wanted to check." Hinata reassuringly said.

"Alright, bye Hinata." Sakura hung up the phone.

Sakura walked back to the bus stop, and waited for it to take her to her home bus stop. Minutes later the bus creaked to a stop in front of the stop, and bursted out black smog. She ducked her head and climbed up the steps and took a seat at the back of the bus. She pulled her iPod out of her bag and listened.

_And the shadow of the day,  
Will embrace the world in gray,  
And the sun will set for you.. _

The bus croaked to a stop and sent out another cloud of toxins. Sakura slowly got up and unplugged out her earbuds. She walked off the bus, and tugged out her keys as she started walking in the building. Pushing her hands through her pink hair, she climbed up the stairs and down hallways until she finally reached her apartment. She slid the key into the lock and opened it. Her so far uneventful life was really getting to her. Little did she know that her life would be changed by the events of tonight's dinner.

_And the sun will set for you,  
and the sun will set for you. _

**Here you go, I finished this sorta to get creative influence flowing before posting my Akatsuki Highschool fic. This, I think, will be fairly successful, I hope. Hope you dudes (dudettes?) enjoyed chapter one. BTW, the song playing is Shadow of the Day by Linkin Park. **


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter is a little short, and the song is "The Good Left Undone" by Rise Against. Get over it if you don't like the song. **

Sakura looked at the clock in her living room. 5:15. She set down her Nintendo DS, and started a shower. After that, she pulled out a pair of black capris and a red tank top. She tugged it on and grabbed a white sweater. She tied on her pair of black converses. With little grace, she brushed her pink hair into a red hairband. It was roughly 5:45 now, so she called up Naruto.

_  
In fields where nothing grew but weeds,  
I found a flower at my feet,  
bending there in my direction.  
I wrapped a hand around its stem  
and pulled until the roots gave in,  
finding there what I've been missing.  
And I know... _

* * *

Naruto was about to get in his piece of crap Camero when his phone started to ring. "Wake Me Up When September Ends" by Green Day. '_It was Sakura'_ he thought with a smile.

"Heylo?"

"Naruto-kun?"

"Hey Sakura-chan! You're still coming tonight, right?"

"Yeah, I just had to tell you that I'm leaving right now, and I might be a little late." Sakura's near-monotone voice crackled.

"I don't have a problem; me and Hinata are leaving right now."

"See you there."

"'Bye." Naruto hung up the phone. He turned to Hinata. "You ready to go Hinata-chan?"

"Yes Naruto-kun." Hinata nodded as she got in the passenger seat of the fading orange Camero. "Is she coming?"

"Yeah."

"Have you told her yet?"

"No… I want it to be a surprise." He unsurely murmured.

"Its okay Naruto-kun, I'm sure she'll love the idea." Hinata grinned. Naruto grinned his fox-like grin.

"Yeah, I'll believe it!" Hinata giggled as Naruto got in the car and started driving.

* * *

_  
So I tell myself, I tell myself, it's wrong.  
There's a point we pass from which we can't return.  
I felt the cold rain of the coming storm..._

_All because of you,  
I haven't slept in so long.  
When I do I dream  
of drowning in the ocean;  
longing for the shore  
where I can lay my head down.  
I'll follow your voice;  
all you have to do is  
shout it out!_

Sakura waited at the bus stop again. "So Naruto-kun's going out with Hinata-chan, huh?" She mumbled to herself. The rosette should have seen it coming the whole time. She remembered how Hinata just hugged Naruto when she left. She held her breath as the bus came to a stop. As it creaked, she started to get up and climb on the bus. As she started to get on, a boy wearing a green shirt with a black jacket over it bumped into her.

"Oh, I'm sorry", Sakura mumbled as she recollected herself and dusted herself off.

"Not a problem", his voice was light and uplifting, but also terribly respectful. "It was my fault really." _'Where have I heard this guy before…? He's probably a radio annoncer or something.' _

Sakura got on the bus and took her spot at the back of the bus. The boy from before just walked to a random seat toward the front. She stared out the window, watching the restaurants, clubs and stores flash by. The bus made several stops, and then finally she saw the restaurant designated, _Chirirenge Akanbee_. She picked up her purse and the bus made her stop. She slowly walked off, and she noticed the back of the boy's head getting off as well. She dismissed it, deciding that the restaurant must be pretty popular. As she walked through the glass doors, she absorbed the surroundings. It was modern, with a stage and microphone, but at the same time felt traditional. She reached in her purse to check the time. 6:15. '_Not bad timing.'_ She thought to herself. Uncertainly, she looked around the restaurant, which was nearly packed. She spotted something familiar. Bright orange.

"Heeey Sakura-chyaaannn!!" Naruto waved, pointing to the table. Sakura gave him a wave. Sakura walked over.

"Sakura-chan, look, Ino-chan and Sai-san came too." Hinata said brightly.

"And Kiba too!" Naruto said hyperly. For the first time in a while, Sakura smiled. She remebered how it used to be. Like a big happy family, only different. It was always loud, and there was always laughing. "We asked Neji to come, but he said he already had 'something planned' with Tenten." Naruto winked.

"Hey forehead, come sit over here!" Ino smiled.

"Yes, what Beautiful said." Sai waved with his smile. _"So he's still calling her that."_ Ino patted the space next to her. Sakura slid into the seat and they all started talking.

_Inside my hands these petals browned;  
dried up falling to the ground,  
but it was already too late now.  
I pushed my fingers through the earth,  
returned this flower to the dirt;  
so it could live, I walked away now.  
But I know... _

"Hey have you seen Lee?" Kiba asked the rosette from across the table.

"No." She murmured, twisting a bit of carnation hair around her finger.

"Really?" Naruto yelled. "He said he'd be coming after work. Which is around _your_ bus stop."

"No it isn't baka. It's closer to my bus stop. You've got your cities mixed up." Ino scolded him.

"Whatever." Naruto turned his head down. A jingle was heard at the door. Everyone turned there head around. Someone walked in. Someone all too familiar.

_Not a day goes by when I don't feel this burn.  
There's a point we pass from which we can't return.  
I felt the cold rain of the coming storm..._

All because of you,  
I haven't slept in so long.  
When I do I dream  
of drowning in the ocean;  
longing for the shore  
where I can lay my head down.  
I'll follow your voice;  
all you have to do is  
shout it out!... 

_  
All because of you  
I believe in angels.  
Not the kind with wings,  
no, not the kind with halos;  
the kind that bring you home  
when home becomes a strange place.  
I'll follow your voice;  
all you have to do is  
shout it out! _

****

**Okay guys, that's all I'm giving you for now. Who do you think walked through the door? I want it to be interesting. Just send it in with your reviews. Thanks! Michiyo… OUT! ;D **


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